Learn · UNC Highlands Field Site
A semester in the mountains
The Highlands Field Site: a semester away for undergraduates, hosted at HBS and offered through UNC-Chapel Hill’s Institute for the Environment.
One semester17 credit hoursSix coursesField days all term
Made possible in part through funding from the Highlands Biological Foundation.
The program
Environmental science, in place
Students live in Highlands at 4,118 feet in the Blue Ridge, one of temperate North America’s biodiversity hotspots, and combine rigorous coursework, independent research and fieldwork across the southern Appalachians.
Each student completes a semester-long research project on a real conservation challenge with field experts and local partners. Past projects have ranged from bat hibernacula and invasive species to microplastics and wetland management.
Courses
Six courses, one place
17 credit hours, course by course
Tap a course to see what it is.
Field life
What students do
Field data
Professional instruments and GIS software.
Drones & satellites
Flying drones and interpreting satellite imagery.
Hiking & camping
Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests.
Presenting
Research shared with peers, faculty and community partners.